Walk Away Renee
by Raiderette Levin
Summary: A song-fic based after the Left Banke song of the same title from 1966. Starring Mike Stoker.


**Author's Note: Finally, after a three-month absence, I'm happy to update my fan fiction. I've had really bad writer's block. I'm hoping to update my other stories soon.**

**I really love the song "Just Walk Away Renee" by the Left Banke. It's a rather simple song with a rather complex meaning. I wanted to write a song fic for it, but ran into a problem of who to cast. Joe's a tad too old for it, Roy belongs and has always belonged to Joanne, it just doesn't sound like Johnny, and if I used Brackett, it would contradict one of my other stories. So, I decided to try an experiment and cast Mike Stoker as my leading man. As always, your comments are important to me, so please let me know what you think. Thank you and happy reading! :)**

He couldn't remember how long it had been. A year, maybe? Longer? Though he did not know the exact length, he knew it had been too long. A visit home was long overdue.

He didn't know why he hadn't gone back sooner. Or maybe he did know. It had been some time ago, a long time ago. But even still, it found ways to torture him.

"More coffee?"

Michael Stoker met the friendly blue eyes of his mother. She was holding the coffeepot in her right hand.

"No thank you."

She set the pot back on the stove and eased down in chair, joining her youngest son at the kitchen table. Smiling, she asked, "Are you all settled?"

"Yep."

"Do you need any more blankets?"

Mike smiled. "I'm fine, Mom. I think I have enough blankets for ten beds."

Her easy smile broadened. Checking her watch, she yawned. "Oh, it's been such a long day. I think I'll take a nap after I get dinner in the oven. Is that all right with you?"

"Sure. Need help with dinner?"

"No, no, that's fine." Mrs. Stoker stood and walked to the kitchen sink. She glanced at the thermometer she kept just outside of her kitchen window. "It's down to 75 degrees."

Mike stood and brought his empty mug to the sink. Setting it down on the countertop, he looked outside. "Sure enough." Dusk was coming, creating a pleasant warm environment outside. It had always been Mike's favorite part of summer. "Maybe I'll take a walk."

"That sounds like a nice idea. Maybe you'll run into some of the old neighbors. They miss you almost as much as I do." Mrs. Stoker filled the sink partway with water and opened a cabinet for potatoes.

He touched his mother lightly on the back. "You're sure you don't need any help?"

"I'm positive. You go enjoy yourself."

Recognizing her tone, he ventured toward the front door. "Alright. I won't be long."

"Have fun!"

Mike slipped on his tennis shoes and grabbed a light jacket, just in case. He slipped out the door and began to stroll down the dull, gray sidewalk. He'd walked the same sidewalks millions of times. He'd learned to ride a bike on them, skinned his knees on them, and fried the ants off of them with his magnifying glass. The newer section on the corner held his handprint from when he was eight years old.

He breathed in a huge breath of fresh, summer air. If that alone hadn't been enough to transport him into the past, the one-way sign was. When he reached the corner, he looked up and saw it. Behind it, the old lot was still empty and grassy.

Thinking back on all of the times he had passed this way on the journey back from school, the memories he would have liked to forget could not be stopped.

"_Come on, Mike!" She tugged at his hand, struggling to pull him along with her. "It's already way past my curfew. My old man's going to kill us!"_

"_Tell him the movie got out late."_

"_You ought to know by now he'll never buy that."_

"_You mean he's waiting up for you?" This scared Mike a bit. Her dad had always been hard to convince, even if you were telling the absolute truth._

"_You never know." She quit tugging and looked at him. "Mike, come on! I'm serious!"_

_He looped an arm languidly around her shoulders and walked slowly toward her block. "It'll be fine, Renee. How were we supposed to know the car would break down?"_

"_Knowing my father, he'll think you planned it." Her worry was easing. She looked to him, knowingly. "You've obviously never heard the things he says about teenaged boys."_

"_Well he obviously doesn't know me well. I'm responsible."_

_Renee looked down at the sidewalk before saying: "There are reasons I keep this hidden under my blouse." She held up Mike's senior ring that she had looped on a gold chain around her neck. _

"_You should be able to wear that if you want to."_

"_Not in my father's eyes…I think he's too afraid to let go."_

"_He'll have to learn. One more year, and we're going to college!" _

_She fell silent and slipped the charm back under her shirt. She wrapped an arm around his waist and hugged him tightly. _

"_Renee?"_

"_That's coming up soon, isn't it?"_

"_Sure. But what are you worried about, huh? Class president, straight-A student?" He winked._

_She didn't respond._

"_Maybe some things will change but…" He lowered his voice. "You'll still have me. Today, tomorrow, and forever. I'll always love you, Renee."_

First love, true love; it had been his. He'd loved Renee from the minute he first set sight on her in grade school: A happy, dark-haired girl with an infectious smile and an adventurous spirit.

The wind blew harder and the air seemed to hold an eerie silence and cold gloom. He pulled the coat on. When he felt the first drops, he didn't know if they were rain or tears. Maybe that was because he soon had both dripping slowly down his face. The pain was too intense, even eight years later. He may have pretended he didn't care in the past, but it still hurt him deeper than anything else he had ever experienced.

_Over. Done. That's what she had said. It wasn't right anymore. The two of them no longer belonged together. Why, Renee, why?_

"_What's wrong Renee? Have you been out with somebody else? You can't call it quits now."_

_He couldn't read her. "Just let me go, Mike. You're better off without me."_

"_Don't walk away, now. Not after all of those years. When did you stop loving me? What did I do wrong?"_

"_It's got nothing to do with that! Mike…" She was trying to reason with him. "Please, please understand."_

"_How am I supposed to? You're not making any sense!"_

"_You've changed."_

_Mike was confused. "How have I changed?"_

"_We've both changed."_

She walked out of his life that day. He didn't want anybody to know how upset he was. He shoved all of his feelings aside, hoping to forget them.

The skies cried for him, the day Renee left and on his walk. Knowing he would be pretty wet by the time he got home, he decided to visit his old school.

The old brick building looked the same as it always had. Big, old, and weathered. He walked around the perimeter of it to the back where he tucked under the eaves. He used the back of his hand to brush the tears away from his eyes.

Mike ran another hand across the weathered brick, feeling quite nostalgic as he did. His hand felt a deep gash in the brick and he pulled away. He felt even more wistful when he saw what it was.

A small heart was engraved on the wall. Inside, it read "Mike + Renee". That had been there since his middle school days. It still remained, filling him with more grief and haunting him, still.

He placed his hand on top of it again before leaning against the wall and breaking down.

"_Wherever you are, Renee, wherever you may be going, I'll wait for you." It had been nearly a year since Renee had broken up with him. He, too, was going off to start a new life soon. _

_Nothing had seemed right since the day she called it quits. Maybe it was just because he didn't quite feel right. His block didn't seem the same anymore, now that he no longer walked it with Renee._

"You're not to blame."

_Today, tomorrow, and forever._


End file.
